Judges 12

1 And the men of Ephraim are called together, and pass over northward, and say to Jephthah, “Why have you passed over to fight against the sons of Ammon, and have not called on us to go with you? We burn your house with fire over you.”

Now the men of Ephraim came together and took up arms and went over to Zaphon; and they said to Jephthah, Why did you go over to make war against the children of Ammon without sending for us to go with you? Now we will put your house on fire over you.

2 And Jephthah says to them, “I have been a man of great strife (I and my people) with the sons of Ammon, and I call you, and you have not saved me out of their hand,

And Jephthah said to them, I and my people were in danger, and the children of Ammon were very cruel to us, and when I sent for you, you gave me no help against them.

3 and I see that you are not a savior, and I put my life in my hand, and pass over to the sons of Ammon, and YHWH gives them into my hand—and why have you come up to me this day to fight against me?”

So when I saw that there was no help to be had from you, I put my life in my hand and went over against the children of Ammon, and the Lord gave them into my hands: why then have you come up to me this day to make war on me?

4 And Jephthah gathered all the men of Gilead, and fights with Ephraim, and the men of Gilead strike Ephraim, because they said, “You Gileadites [are] fugitives of Ephraim, in the midst of Ephraim—in the midst of Manasseh.”

Then Jephthah got together all the men of Gilead and made war on Ephraim; and the men of Gilead overcame Ephraim.

5 And Gilead captures the passages of the Jordan to Ephraim, and it has been, when [any of] the fugitives of Ephraim say, “Let me pass over,” and the men of Gilead say to him, “[Are] you an Ephraimite?” And he says, “No”;

And the Gileadites took the crossing-places of Jordan against the Ephraimites; and when any of the men of Ephraim who had gone in flight said, let me go over; the men of Gilead said to him, Are you an Ephraimite? And if he said, No;

6 that they say to him, “Now say, Shibboleth”; and he says, “Sibboleth,” and is not prepared to speak right—and they seize him, and slaughter him at the passages of the Jordan, and there fall at that time, of Ephraim, forty-two chiefs.

Then they said to him, Now say Shibboleth; and he said Sibboleth, and was not able to say it in the right way; then they took him and put him to death at the crossing-places of Jordan; and at that time forty-two thousand Ephraimites were put to death.

7 And Jephthah judged Israel [for] six years, and Jephthah the Gileadite dies, and is buried in [one of] the cities of Gilead.

Now Jephthah was judge of Israel for six years. And Jephthah the Gileadite came to his death, and his body was put to rest in his town, Mizpeh of Gilead.

8 And after him Ibzan of Beth-Lehem judges Israel,

And after him, Ibzan of Beth-lehem was judge of Israel.

9 and he has thirty sons, and thirty daughters he gave away [in marriage], and thirty daughters he brought in from outside for his sons; and he judges Israel [for] seven years.

He had thirty sons, and thirty daughters whom he sent to other places, and he got thirty wives from other places for his sons. And he was judge of Israel for seven years.

10 And Ibzan dies, and is buried in Beth-Lehem.

And Ibzan came to his death and his body was put to rest at Beth-lehem.

11 And after him Elon the Zebulunite judges Israel, and he judges Israel [for] ten years,

And after him, Elon the Zebulonite was judge of Israel; and he was judge of Israel for ten years.

12 and Elon the Zebulunite dies, and is buried in Aijalon, in the land of Zebulun.

And Elon the Zebulonite came to his death, and his body was put to rest in Aijalon in the land of Zebulun.

13 And after him, Abdon son of Hillel, the Pirathonite, judges Israel,

And after him, Abdon, the son of Hillel, the Pirathonite, was judge of Israel.

14 and he has forty sons, and thirty grandsons, riding on seventy donkey-colts, and he judges Israel [for] eight years.

He had forty sons and thirty sons' sons who went on seventy young asses; and he was judge of Israel for eight years.

15 And Abdon son of Hillel, the Pirathonite, dies, and is buried in Pirathon, in the land of Ephraim, in the hill-country of the Amalekite.

And Abdon, the son of Hillel, came to his death, and his body was put to rest in Pirathon in the land of Ephraim, in the hill-country of the Amalekites.